


One For The Team

by connorssock



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Bust goes wrong, Choking, Gratuitous Gavin Whump, Gunshot Wounds, Jericho to the rescue, M/M, Threat of Rape, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-28
Updated: 2018-11-28
Packaged: 2019-09-01 19:46:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16771672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/connorssock/pseuds/connorssock
Summary: A bust went wrong and Gavin makes a self-sacrificial play to help the others escape.





	One For The Team

**Author's Note:**

> Inaccurate medical "facts" ahoy!

Busts were meant to be the grand finale of a well-planned operation. An in and out with a spike of adrenaline, then it was all over. The bad guys were arrested and the reams of paperwork to wade through mounted. That’s how it should have been. What it should not be, is the four arresting officers being bundled into a rusty walled cell, overpowered by the sheer number of perps that the field ops team had not counted on. They were expecting four, maybe six members of the red ice gang they were trying to bust to be there. Instead, they were faced with twenty and back-up still ten minutes out.

“This fucking suck,” Gavin raged and kicked at the wall.

“Understatement of the century,” Hank rolled his eyes as he replied.

He’d had plans for that evening, after the bust. Maybe a celebratory drink followed by Connor by his side the rest of the night. It irked him to no end that Gavin acted like he was the only one inconvenienced by the events.

“I hate to break up this pity party,” Nines looked anything but sorry, “but did anybody else overhear the talks about bombs planted in the city?”

“Yes, they plan on blowing up New Jericho. I believe one of our captors hold the controller, the one with the tattoo climbing up the side of his neck,” Connor piped up.

There wasn’t much of a chance to make plans as the door was flung open and a group of criminals advanced on them.

“I want no hassle, no drama. But you know too much,” he pointed a baseball bat at the four of them as they huddled closer.

Connor and Nines stood in front of their humans, trying to protect them to the best of their abilities. Behind them, Gavin all but vibrated with energy.

“Reed,” Hank hissed in warning but it was too late.

Gavin darted out from behind Nines and barrelled shoulder first into the hulk of a man at the front of the group – the one with a winding tattoo on the side of his neck – and head-butted him. What followed was a short, brutal scuffle that ended with Gavin on his back, a baseball bat slamming into his abdomen. Defeated, he stayed down, curled up and trying to catch his breath.

“I was going to go easy on you,” the leader of the gang snarled through a bloodied nose, “but you just bought yourselves a ticket to the Pain Express.”

He kicked Gavin in the back once more before he left with threats of being back soon to play. As soon as the door was shut, the three of them crowded around Gavin, chastising him for his brazen ways and reckless behaviour. Gradually, Gavin uncurled, breathing more even as the pain abated and he sat up with a small smile.

“Totally worth it,” he grinned and looked at his fist, curled tightly around something.

Before he could elaborate, the door opened again and the group returned, menacingly looming in the doorway.

“I was going to play with the twink first,” the leader growled as he eyed up Connor, “but suddenly I have a hankering for a drowned rat.”

Behind Nines, Gavin squirmed and tried to hide, eyes wide and his breathing shallow.

“Get a grip on yourself,” Hank hissed.

Nines cast a glance behind him and frowned, Gavin edged away towards the corner with a wild panic, his hand clutched at Nines’ shoulder and the other found his hand as his eyes darted to the open doorway. Without warning he bolted.

A roar went up from the group as Gavin danced around them and took off at a sprint down the narrow corridor. Hank froze when he saw the leader of the group level a gun and clamped his hands over his ears as the shot rang loud through the metal.

“See how you run on one leg,” the man growled with a pleased smile at himself, then he turned to the remaining three of his captives. “I’ll be back.”

The door slammed shut but not quick enough to block out Gavin’s pained cry at whatever they did to him.

“Shit,” Hank ran a hand through his hair, “fucking Reed. He’s going to get himself killed. And us! Because he freaked out. He’s trained better than this.”

“Lieutenant,” Nines interrupted his grumblings.

He was looking down at his palm, an object sat in it. Or rather, two objects, one was a key and attached to it was a keyring that looked suspiciously like a detonator.

“Detective Reed’s bio-signs were inconsistent with the panic attack he appeared to be having. It is my deduction that he feigned it in order to buy us time to get out of here with the key he pressed into my hand before he ran.”

The silence was louder than before and Hank swore again.

“Fucking martyr!” he snarled, fingers gripped his hair tight. “Okay, okay. We get out, find his sorry ass and get out of here pronto. How’s that for a plan?”

“Acceptable,” Nines replied evenly.

As quietly as possible, they opened the door and Hank tried not to wince at the fresh blood splatter and bloody handprints on the wall. No doubt Gavin had tried to keep up the charade of his escape for as long as possible, though at that stage Hank couldn’t have blamed the guy if it was less a charade and more a desperate bid for getting away from more pain.

They wandered the halls on silent feet, occasionally Connor or Nines would freeze, pull them into a side room while footsteps walked past them. It was taking too long and Hank was antsy to get out but also to get to Gavin on time. Each minute longer they took added another minute to the man’s suffering. They were getting closer to their target, if the noises were anything to go by. Raucous laughter interspersed by the thud of a body being hit and a sharp, cracking cry that was undeniably Gavin.

“Look at the bitch quiver. Think he’ll go down again?” a voice roared in mirth.

“Maybe he needs a stiff dick to hold him up. What do you think boys?” another voice joined in and Hank swallowed thickly.

As much as he and Gavin were at odds so often, he didn’t wish any kind of trauma on the man. Given his general demeanour and attitude, Hank would guess he’d already had more than a lifetime’s worth of it.

As noiselessly as possible, the three of them peered around the corner and Hank’s mind blanked for a moment. In the middle of the room, Gavin was tied up to a meat hook. His wrists were bound in chains, strained above his head enough that he could only stand on his tiptoes. That was bad enough, there was blood slipping down Gavin’s arms where it had cut into him and one leg wasn’t bearing any weight either. To make it worse, a chain was wrapped around his throat which was already purple with bruising. Blood trickled from his mouth as his head tipped forward and the man who threatened him previously fisted his hair and pulled him face to face.

“Buckle up, princess, you’re about to be shown who’s boss.”

Hank would have expected Gavin to spit in the man’s face but all Gavin could muster up was a wide eyed stared and a whimper. A chain cracked across his back as an idiot wielded it like a whip and Gavin’s head fell back, mouth open in a silent scream. No noise came out though, too breathless with pain. His legs trembled under him violently, threatening to give out any moment and jerk his shoulders.

“I’ll distract,” Connor whispered under the cover of another bout of laughter. “Nines, you get Gavin while Hank keeps the exit clear for us.”

They nodded in agreement, just in time for another lackey to dig his hand into Gavin’s thigh and press on the bullet wound viciously. The reaction was immediate. With a choked off whine Gavin’s leg gave way and his whole body collapsed downwards. The hook his arms were attached to dipped while the chain around his neck tightened. He wheezed, weakly struggling against the chain digging into his throat. Hank watched as his legs kicked out, trying to find purchase in the slippery pool of blood.

“For fuck’s sake, Nines go!” Hank all but shoved at the android even as Connor was already moving.

With a single minded focus, Nines strode into the midst of the jeering group. He shoved his shoulder against Gavin’s stomach and lifted him in a fireman’s carry. The chains went lax around Gavin’s throat and he heaved in huge gasps of air. His bonds fell away under Nines’ careful fingers as shots rang out.

On the other side of the room, Connor stood with a gun in hand and was picking off the criminals with unerring accuracy. There wasn’t a hint of remorse as he went for kill shots and Hank didn’t see why he should suggest otherwise.

It was less than a minute in which the room was filled with dead bodies and Nines had carried Gavin to the side. His breathing was still erratic, each lungful a hoarse wheeze and his good leg kicked fitfully. With a surprising amount of tenderness, Nines pushed blood soaked hair from his eyes and tried to get Gavin’s attention.

It worked for a moment, Gavin’s eyes settled on Nines with a flicker of recognition, his mouth worked around words that never came out. But the shape of “please” was fairly easy to read amongst them.

“You’ll be okay. I’ve got you,” Nines reassured him and his eyes snapped up to the other two. “We need to move. There’ll be more of them coming.”

As a unit, they walked down the corridors, Connor out front, Hank bringing up the read while Nines cradled Gavin against his chest. They couldn’t stay silent, not the way Gavin occasionally coughed and spluttered or bit off a whine when something pressed against an injury. But thankfully they didn’t encounter any more gang members. Not soon enough they were outside the rusted through warehouse and in the snow.

There was no sign of the backup team anywhere and Hank cursed. No doubt they’d pulled back to formulate a rescue plan, maybe they were hoping to negotiate a deal. It didn’t matter, Gavin needed them now and they weren’t around. Next to him Connor’s LED flashed yellow.

“Emergency services are too far out and the snow only impedes them,” he murmured to Hank. “I’ve called Jericho for assistance; they’ll be here in the matter of minutes.”

“Good thinking,” Hank glanced over to where Nines had sat down on the cold ground and helped Gavin find a semblance of comfort in curling up in his lap, head tucked against his chest. The way he shook didn’t bode well and Hank shrugged out of his coat.

“Here,” he draped it over Gavin’s quivering form and Nines looked up at him with silent thanks. “Help’s on the way.”

“Not Lij, please not Lij,” Gavin’s voice was barely audible, each word a cruel rasp that flecked his lips with more blood.

If only Hank knew what the hell Gavin was talking about. A glance at Nines revealed he was just as clueless while Connor shrugged behind them.

The sound of motors howled through the relative silence and both Hank and Connor stood in front of Gavin and Nines. Four snowmobiles with glaring lights rushed towards them and pulled to a stop close by. The figures were jumping off and rushing towards them. It was only when Markus’ face was easy to make out did Connor and Hank relax.

Two androids hurried around their little barricade and knelt by Nines, prying Gavin from his grip. Their silence was unnerving, even as their LEDs flashed yellow.

“Lieutenant, Connor,” Markus greeted them. “We’ll get you back to Jericho and make sure you get the care you need.”

Sam and Chris will take Detective Reed back urgently. Unless there are any other injuries I’ve missed, Connor perhaps you could take the spare snowmobile and give the Lieutenant a ride. Nines, if you’ll accompany me please.”

There was no missing the almost pained look on Nines’ face as Gavin was carefully bundled onto a snowmobile between the two medical androids and they sped off into the dark. His LED whirled red for a few moments until it was out of sight before he clambered behind Markus.

New Jericho really was only a couple of minutes away, the warehouse would have been the perfect vantage point to watch it explode and burn from. Hank gritted his teeth as he held onto Connor, trying not to think about how close they came to losing so much. Inside New Jericho it was silent. It was eerie as Hank looked around, androids were everywhere but there wasn’t a single word being uttered, no laughter, nothing. Those androids that still had their LEDs were flickering between yellow and blue until they saw the group approaching, at which point they turned red.

“Follow me,” Markus’ voice was quiet but it still felt like he was shouting in the silence.

Without another word they trudged through the grounds, into the lobby and took an elevator up.

“My apologies for such an icy reception,” Markus said once the door had shut behind them. “My people are uncomfortable with having humans in their sanctuary and a prototype deviant hunter plus his upgrade amongst them.”

“We appreciate their tolerance and hospitality. I have to ask though, why don’t they speak? It’s like a monastery with a vow of silence here!” Hank asked.

“They talk,” Connor was the one to answer, “they talk all the time. But vocalising thoughts is only done for the benefit of humans. Androids don’t need to speak to communicate.”

Something twisted in Hank’s gut uncomfortably at the realisation that probably, all the times Nines and Connor had been talking had been aloud for his and Gavin’s benefit. It also made him wonder who they had talked to on their way through New Jericho and whether they conversed between themselves silently.

Markus’ eyes went distant for a moment and he gave a small smile.

“The medics are done. Gavin will make a full recovery but they recommend counselling to deal with the psychological aftermath of brutality.”

“I’ll see to it that it’s arranged,” Nines said, “may I go see him?”

Instructions were sent to him non-verbally and Nines turned on his heels. Connor and Hank hurried after him after exchanging a wary glance. The corridors were clear as they stormed through them, Nines with a single minded focus while Hank tried to keep up.

“What are you doing here?” Gavin’s voice was a hoarse, angry whisper but it still floated out of the room. It brought the little group to a stop just outside of the door.

“Oh Gavin,” a vaguely familiar voice replied and Connor cocked his head to the side. “Am I not allowed to worry for my own brother?”

“How did you even know?”

“A deviated Chloe saw you arrive. She sent out an alert and I got here as quickly as possible,” the voice replied and Hank tried to place it. He hadn’t even known Gavin had a brother.

“Come home Gavin,” there was a soft pleading note now, obviously an argument that was hashed over repeatedly. “You’re getting too old to be shot at, tortured and beaten up. Let the younger generation play action heroes.”

“37 isn’t old,” Gavin rasped and followed it up with some coughing and swearing.

“The company’s not been the same since you left.”

It gave pause for thought as Hank remembered Gavin transferring over from some other city he couldn’t be bothered to remember the name of. He’d seemed so green and young at the time, too green to be a seasoned detective with a few years under his belt.

“I’ve been working on natural aging so humans and androids could grow old together, now that your deviancy work has paid off. I hear you’d even managed to break the CyberLife security on the RK900 series through sheer obstinacy and bad manners. You always were better than those idiots.”

“Shut up. I’m not coming back. I’m making a difference where I am,” Gavin’s voice had changed, softened to something resigned.

That was the moment Nines had enough and knocked obnoxiously loud on the door. A twin set of eyes turned to look at him and Hank tried not to gawp. Gavin was propped up in bed, the blood had been cleaned from his stubble, butterfly bandages kept the wound on his forehead shut but nothing could be done about the livid, purpling bruises around his throat. It was almost a macabre imitation of the high collar Nines used to wear.

“You shouldn’t strain your voice. The haemorrhage of your vocal cords has only just settled,” Nines said as he entered the room.

“Hello,” Kamski greeted them pleasantly.

When Nines blanked him, he actually looked a little crestfallen. To be fair, all of Nines’ attention was directed to Gavin, assessing and analysing the damage. By far the worst was the gunshot to the thigh; most other injuries were deep tissue bruising, lacerations and scrapes.

“Judging by your lack of surprise at my presence, I’m going to guess you had been eavesdropping by the door. Nice to see you again Connor, Lieutenant Anderson,” Kamski pulled himself together and offered a forced smile.

“Guess the cat’s out of the bag,” Gavin added and he stared up at Nines apologetically. “Hi.”

“You idiot,” Nines chastised even as he settled on the bed next to Gavin and offered himself as a pillow to lean against, arm up and ready to wrap around him. “Never do that again.”

“As his superior officer, I do believe that it should be my job to chew him out,” Hank butted in and stared at Gavin hard. “You dumbass. You’re not expendable, when are you going to get that through your thick head?”

“What he’s saying,” Connor picked up, “is we’re relieved you’re going to be okay. And stop your self-sacrificing. We’d miss you if anything were to happen to you.”

Gavin eyes them all with a mixture of suspicion and sheepishness. He jumped when Kamski laid a hand on his good leg.

“Just consider my offer, your job’s still there.”

“What does that mean?” Connor asked innocently even as he moved to subtly block the doorway.

Kamski and Gavin shared a look, Gavin glanced away first with a shrug.

“What it means is, when you grow up with a brother, you tend to share interests and hobbies. Though I was always more the hardware guy and Gavin was the software one. He left CyberLife some nine years ago to pursue a career in police work for some unfathomable reason. But his coding is the basis of android mainframes,” Kamski explained and the silence in the room was palpable.

Nines turned his head and looked down at Gavin with fond pride before he opened his mouth.

“I’m still not calling you Daddy.”

**Author's Note:**

> Bumbling away on tumblr as @connorssock


End file.
